Fergie’s Tartan treat
The domestic champions north and south of the border were drawn in Group E along with Panathinaikos and Stuttgart, while Arsenal were handed the toughest task of the five British clubs by being drawn in Group B alongside Inter Milan, Dynamo Kiev and Locomotiv Moscow.
Chelsea will face Lazio former club of Hernan Crespo and Juan Sebastian Veron Sparta Prague and Besiktas in Group G, while Celtic are in Group A with Bayern Munich, Lyon and Anderlecht.
The Manchester United v Rangers duels will command the most attention, and what will inevitably be dubbed 'the Battle of Britain' has added interest in that United boss Alex Ferguson once played for the Glasgow club.
To add further spice, Ferguson is also old friends with Alex McLeish, the man who now manages Rangers, from the days when they were manager and captain of Aberdeen, respectively.
United's first match is at home against Panathinaikos on September 16, with the first Rangers game at Ibrox on October 22.
Ferguson said: "It's a great draw. I was half expecting to get a Scottish team, and it has happened. Alex McLeish is an old player of mine and has done a great job at Rangers."
Rangers chairman John McClelland said: "You could say it's going to be a play-off for the unofficial title of undisputed champions of Britain.
"We wanted a big team in our group, either Real Madrid or Manchester United and we got one perhaps the biggest."
United's Gary Neville has hailed the new Champions League format and believes the standard of this season's competition will be better than ever.
Providing the Old Trafford outfit can finish in the top two, they will advance into the last 16 and a straight knock-out competition as opposed to the second group format which has been used in the previous four years.
"It is a better format than last year. The second group phase diluted the competition slightly and it turned the first group into a bit of a non-event." said the United defender.
That is not what the Champions League is supposed to be about.
"There are six or seven teams who are more than capable of winning that trophy," he added.
"AC Milan, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Juventus all have the same aspirations as Manchester United and we would be ignorant to think we are the only club who should be winning it. The pressure is there in their countries as well."
Meanwhile, Celtic chairman Brian Quinn believes the club have a good chance of progressing to the knock-out stage, even with their first match away at Bayern Munich.
He said: "Bayern are obviously favourites but the rest of us are pretty evenly matched.
"The one thing we must do whatever happens and Newcastle's experience in the Champions League last season showed this is not lose heart at any stage of the competition."
Arsenal face two daunting trips to eastern Europe in the recent past they have lost to Spartak Moscow and Shakhtar Donetsk as well as a first game at Highbury against Serie A runners-up Inter on September 17.
The Gunners vice-chairman David Dein insisted he was not worried, saying: "It's great for the air miles! But we are playing some very attractive football, we have won three games, we have got a strong squad but it's very early.
"We have improved and the fact we were seeded fifth shows we have progressed. It's a hard draw but it's there to be won.
"We have never passed the quarter-final stage so we hope we can do better than that."
Chelsea's chairman Ken Bates had hoped to be grouped with the Russian clubs as an added bonus for the club's Russian owner, Roman Abramovich, but had to be content with Lazio, Besiktas and a first match away at Sparta Prague.
Bates said: "I was hoping we were going to get Locomotiv Moscow and Dynamo Kiev.
"It would have been rather ironic with our new ownership, but Arsenal got those instead."
Chelsea boss Ranieri believes Hernan Crespo can match the impact Ruud van Nistelrooy and Thierry Henry have had on English football, as Chelsea were grouped with Lazio, the striker's former club.
The Chelsea coach, who appears poised to make Claude Makelele the final piece of his jigsaw with a £10m move from Real Madrid, added: "I have followed Crespo for a long time.
"He wants to win and score. He's a fantastic player, he attacks space, he's strong and he's clever. There was also the opportunity to buy him."
With Crespo arriving at Stamford Bridge to join Mutu, as well as Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Eidur Gudjohnsen, there was no room left for Mikael Forssell, at least for the time being.
The promising 23-year-old Finland international is on the brink of joining Birmingham on loan until the end of the season, having previously enjoyed successful spells at Crystal Palace and Borussia Moenchengladbach.
Boudewijn Zenden is also set to leave, possibly for Paris St Germain, having dropped out of favour at Chelsea with Ranieri revealing: "I spoke with him a long time ago and he knows what I think."
Makelele, however, was still waiting to learn about his future, with Chelsea expected to hold talks with Real Madrid after the Champions League draw in Monaco.
The midfielder admitted: "I don't know what's going to happen, but there are only two days left."
The sticking point is understood to be the price, and Madrid's commercial director Emilio Butragueno said in Monte Carlo: "Nothing has happened so far, nothing has been signed.
"We will miss Makalele if he leaves because he is a very good player, but I believe Real Madrid has the resources to fill any gap in the squad so I am not worried."
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